Odoorn, Exloo, Orvelte

Ash trees, briars and farms with thatched roofs: In the old Drenthe sand villages, such as Odoorn, Exloo and Valthe, you can still see all kinds of elements from the old agricultural settlements that originated here as early as the Middle Ages. Several places even still have a real sheepfold in the middle of the village, from where the primal Drents flock departs daily for the heathland.

The first settlements arose on the dry, higher sandy grounds of central Drenthe as early as the Middle Ages, while the surrounding marshy moors remained uninhabited for centuries. These sandy villages all had the same structure, many of which can still be seen in today's towns. In the centre lay one or more ashes. These were communal fields on which farmers mainly grew grain. Surrounding this were several large wooden farms, originally still covered with straw. At the very edge of the village was the brink: a field with grass and large oak trees, whose wood could be used for a new farmhouse or, for instance, a sheep pen. After a tree was cut down, a new one was also planted right away.

As farming was very difficult on the dry sandy soils, farmers mainly kept cows and sheep. The cows grazed on lower ground around a stream and the sheep on the moors. The animals gave farmers not only wool, milk and meat, but also fertile manure! The sheep herds returned to the sheepfold in the evening and the next day the farmers collected the droppings left behind and spread them on the fields on the ash, making them more fertile. Thus, sheep were given a key role in the agricultural development of the Drenthe sandy villages.

Today, several places still have their own sheep flock, sometimes with a sheep pen in the middle of the village as in the tourist towns of Exloo and Orvelte. In the summer months, one of the shepherds takes the animals daily to the moors where, by just grazing, they keep the landscape open.
There are two official Drenthe sheep breeds: the somewhat larger Schoonebeeker heideschaap, which has a long coat in various colours with a hairy texture, and the much more slender Drentse Heideschaap, with a woolly tail and mostly grey-white coat. The rams have fearsome-looking large twisted horns. This breed roamed here as early as 4,000 BC, making it the oldest breed of sheep on mainland Western Europe.

The purpose of flocks has changed considerably. It is now mainly about maintaining the breeds and managing nature reserves. In addition, the 'sheared' (shepherd-supervised) flocks have great cultural-historical value. Sheep herding in Drenthe is even part of the Netherlands' Intangible Cultural Heritage. On this route, you cycle through several old sandy villages, visit two active sheepfolds, see - if you are lucky - free-living sheep in the nature reserves along the way and experience Drenthe's primal nature.


Tip: want to see even more old thatched farms and sheepfolds? Cycle from junction 59 in De Kiel to Open Air Museum Ellert and Brammert at Tramstraat 73 in Schoonoord. Among other things, you will find a reconstructed old sod hut and thatched old farms. There is also a small old sheepfold used by deer. In the middle grounds is a non-accessible larger sheepfold with a small flock.


This Premium cycle route was put together by our editor: Wieger Favier.